


Dudley's Call

by StardustDreamsandAnarchy



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child - Thorne & Rowling
Genre: Black Hermione Granger, Canon Compliant, Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor Harry Potter, Familial Abuse, Gen, Good Dudley Dursley, Harry Potter Next Generation, Indian Harry Potter, Minor Original Character(s), Nice Dudley Dursley, Not Canon Compliant, Post-Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Redeemed Dudley Dursley, Redemption, Ten Years Later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:42:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24637774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StardustDreamsandAnarchy/pseuds/StardustDreamsandAnarchy
Summary: A random call shakes Harry to his core. It's been a decade and suddenly, Dudley is reaching out. He wants to meet, but why?
Relationships: Dudley Dursley/Original Female Character(s), Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley
Comments: 8
Kudos: 172





	1. Dudley's Call

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is more of a work-wide note. As we all know, Jowling Kowling Rowling has had controversy for the last few years and due to the most recent transphobia, a lot of people are reticent to put HP themed work out there. I, personally, subscribe to Death of the Author theory. JK put her work out there and the public can take from it what they want. HP is meaningful to me, but I also want to put my own take on it, and fix the issues I see with it (especially The Cursed Child * _shudders_ *). As a black & queer creator, part of why I created this was to remedy some of the representation problems found within the og series. I hope y'all keep reading this, since I plan to keep making it, but I support everyone who wants to cut HP and JK outta their lives. -Corbin

“Hey Harry… It’s been a minute.”  
The deep, but soft voice coming through the phone was in no way familiar to Harry’s sleep-addled brain.  
“I’m sorry, who’s this?”  
The voice laughed. “Yeah, I figured you wouldn’t recognize me over the phone at least. It’s Dudley, Harry.”  


Harry was wide awake now. It had been nearly a decade since he’d last spoken to his cousin, even longer since he’d seen him in person. He and Ginny had done their best to incorporate the muggle world and the wizarding world in their kids lives, so they had a computer and phone at 12 Grimmauld Place, which they now used as a summer house, and Harry had friended Dudley on Facebook out of a sense of duty, but they never messaged each other, they just politely liked each other’s posts.  


“Dudley! What’s going on?”  
“I know it’s been a while, but I’d like to meet, if that’s okay?”  
“Uh, sure… Where do you want to go? I know you live in London; do you want to meet at a coffee shop or-?”  
“No!” Dudley cut him off. “No, I, uhm. I think it’s important that I come to your house…”  
“Oh.” They both sat in silence for a while and Harry looked over at Ginny who was stirring from her sleep.  
“You can come tomorrow. Does noon work for you?”  
“Noon is perfect.”  
They hung up and Harry sat up fully on the side of the bed.  


“Is everything alright?” Ginny was up now too, and she’d rolled over to wrap her arms around Harry. “We never get any calls, especially at this time.”  
“That was Dudley… my cousin.” Harry rubbed his scar in confusion and frustration. “He’s coming over tomorrow.”  


He’d mentioned Dudley to Ginny before, but she’d never met him. George loved to regale the Weasley’s, and anyone who would listen really, about the time he and Fred had tricked Dudley into testing their ton-tongue treats, but that was the most people tended to hear about him and Harry was fairly happy to leave it that way. He was working towards moving on from his past, making his own story and not just living out the one that had been written for him.  
Why had Dudley reached out? Why now?  


The sound of feet pounded above them, and Ginny sighed.  
“The boys are up.” And a few seconds later their door burst open and James and Al barged into their room, taking flying leaps onto the bed.  
“Careful boys!” Harry reached up and grabbed James midair before he crashed into Ginny. “We have to be careful of your Mum, boys. She’s carrying precious cargo.”  
Ginny swatted his arm and began to work her way out of the tangle of limbs that now surrounded her.  
“I’m not some dainty flower Harry.” Ginny said as she walked around to his side of the bed.  
“Yes, but she is.” He reached a hand out to touch her stomach. Just a few months left, and they’d have their Lily, their first girl. Still holding James, he stood up and hugged Ginny. Albus jumped up from the bed and hugged Ginny’s leg, and they began their trek to the kitchen.  


“So, did Dudley say what he was coming over for?”  
“No, but he was clear that we had to meet here. Maybe he doesn’t want his neighbors to see his fruitcake cousin.”  
“I’m sure that’s not it, Harry.”  
“I bet his wife doesn’t even know he has a cousin.”  


They were making breakfast now and the boys were running around. Kreacher was helping to set the table, stopping occasionally to pick up Albus when he fell or to nose in and demand that he cook instead of Ginny and Harry. They finished cooking and served breakfast, talking through the issue the whole time. As breakfast ended, Ginny glanced at a clock and realized the time.  
“I guess we’ll have to wait and see tomorrow. Meanwhile, I’ve got to go, can’t be late for my first day.”  


It was the off season and Ginny was pregnant, so she’d decided to pick up work as a sport reporter at the New Daily Prophet. Of course, as a famed Quidditch Player, they were glad to have her, but they were still starting her off on the “non-sports sports”. Today, Ginny was set to shadow one of the senior reporters at a Wizard’s Chess Tournament. Ron was actually going to be there as a judge and spectator.  


Harry had had a change of career too. After the War, he’d felt lost and angry, and he’d joined the Auror division of the Ministry, but most of Voldemort’s cohorts were quickly caught and put away. Dark wizards weren’t a big threat anymore, and Harry had never felt happy hunting them. He and Ron both had felt listless as Auror’s, so they’d left. Ron left after 5 years, when all the major players had been snatched up and gone to work at Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes with George. Harry had lasted for another 5, but he knew he needed a change, especially with his young boys at home, so he’d applied to work at Hogwarts as Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. It felt like the right move. He’d always loved the things he’d done with the DA and now all the kids he’d gone to school with were gone. Hogwarts had always felt more like home than anywhere else, and he wanted to give back in some way. McGonagall put him through the paces as a “preliminary measure”, but the DADA teacher who had taken over post-war was looking to move on and most people still thought the position was cursed, so it was Harry’s for the taking. This September, he’d be one of the newest Hogwarts Professors. He had been excited to learn that Professor Sprout had retired and that he’d be joined by Neville there too.  


Ginny left and Harry spent his day finding distractions for the boys and trying to form a lesson plan for his students, but he couldn’t stop thinking about Dudley and his time at Privet Drive. The years of abuse and misery he’d gone through. Harry had a sinking feeling that the visit tomorrow would be much the same.  
***  


“When’s Cousin Dudley coming over?”  
“Cousin Dudley! Cousin Dudley!”  


James was sitting on the couch, kicking his legs in the air as Albus bounced around the living room. They were excited to meet someone from their dad’s side of the family, they knew all of their uncles and aunts, as well as their Grandma and Grandpa, as they called Molly and Arthur, but their dad’s family was a mystery to them.  


Harry fidgeted with the sleeves of his Weasley sweater. It was the dead of summer, but he felt like he needed something to ground him, remind him that he was alright, so he’d worn it.  
“He’ll be here soon; your dad is going out to meet him now.” Ginny sat next to James and shushed him. “We’re just going to say hi to him, then we’re going to go to the park after!”  


Al and James cheered and began chattering happily and Harry stepped outside. He’d told Dudley to meet him on the corner he’d landed on his first time coming to 12 Grimmauld Place. The area had changed a lot in the last few years, and now the corner was a bus stop. He sat on the bench hunched over, looking up at every passerby, trying to recognize his cousin. About 10 minutes after he began waiting, he saw a tall, buff man in a light jacket coming around the corner. His blonde hair was coiffed in an honestly impressive array above his head and his blue eyes were soft and kind, nothing at all like what Harry remembered, but the face looked like a mix of Aunt Petunia’s and Uncle Vernon’s, and the man was making a beeline directly at Harry, so he stood up and brushed off his pants.  
“Harry!” His voice rang through the quiet streets, making heads turn. As he got closer, Harry could see that Dudley had grown a lot. He was still muscular, but he’d also put on some weight, making his figure more like that of a teddy bear than of a threat.  


“Hey Dudley.” They were inches apart now and they hesitated, then Dudley reached out a hand, which Harry took. “It’s been a while… Uhm, I live right across the street.” They walked across the street in silence and Harry led Dudley to his front porch.  
“Where’s the house?” To Dudley, he was looking at a blank patch of wall between number’s 11 and 13. Harry pushed the door open and reached a hand out to his cousin. Dudley took it and was pulled in to Grimmauld Place.  


“Wow…” Dudley was looking around the vast hallway and Harry gestured at him to keep quiet.  
They’d put several charms on Walburga’s portrait to keep her subdued, but Harry was sure hell would break loose if she woke up to find Dudley in her house.  
“This way.” He led Dudley in to the living room. “Dudley, this is Ginny, and these are James and Albus.”  


Ginny nodded a greeting from the couch, saying “Hi Dudley, I’ve heard a lot about you. Kids, go meet your cousin!” She gently pushed James and Albus over, but they hesitated. Dudley was no where near as big as Uncle Hagrid, but he was very large.  
Seeing their hesitation, Dudley crouched down and held out a hand to the boys.  


“Nice too meet you Albus, and you too James.”  
James crept forward and placed his hand in his cousin’s, shaking it very seriously. Boldened by his brother, Albus came forward too and followed his lead, letting his hand be engulfed by the large hand of Dudley.  
Dudley had his arms crossed over each other, with a boy holding on to each hand and he shook their hands vigorously, sending the boys into a fit of giggles. Ginny stepped forward and began to usher the boys out. She was smiling now, happy to see that Dudley hadn’t scared the kids.  


“I know you wanted a chance to talk to Harry, and I figured you might want some privacy to do this, so I’m taking the boys to the park.” She kissed Harry’s cheek, then added “I asked Kreacher to put some tea on and then sent him upstairs, I thought it might be best.  
“Thank you, Ginny.” They embraced and she took the kids away, exclaiming “To the Park!” which the kids echoed with fervor.  
Dudley straightened up and was watching the family interact, a smile playing across his lips.  


“Very cute kids.”  
Harry blushed a bit and ruffled his hair.  
“Thanks, I’ve seen pictures of yours online. You have one about James’ age, right? Daisy?”  
Dudley looked down at his feet. “Yeah, she’s going to be four in a few days.”  
Harry could feel Dudley’s energy change. He was much more timid now than he had ever been as a child.  
“Let’s go to the kitchen. I’ll pour us some tea and we can talk.”  


“Oh yeah, your wife mentioned something about a creature?”  
“Don’t worry about it.” Harry shook his head and walked the circuitous route through the rooms to the kitchen, doing his best to avoid any portraits or things that might freak Dudley out.  
He sat Dudley down at the table and began busying himself with the now whistling kettle.  


Dudley looked around the room and found it very cozy. There were still pictures of Harry with his wife and kids, as well as with another red-headed man and a black woman with a large afro, then more of a large family of redheads with Harry and Hermione in the middle. Their brown skin and dark hair made them stand out among the sea of red, but it was clear they belonged there.  


“I’m glad you’ve found a family, Harry.” Dudley spoke, still looking around the kitchen.  
Harry stiffened where he stood, his hands gripped the tea tray and he could see the old scar stand out again.  
“I’m sorry we never were much of one. That’s sort of what brought me here today.” Harry relaxed and brought the tray over.  
“What do you mean?”  


“I’ve wanted to reach out to you for over a decade, man. That day when we left you-“ Dudley looked down and shook his head. “We treated you like shit. _I_ treated you like shit; because that’s what was modeled to me, because I was taught that to be strong, I had to always put others down. Then when your powers began to show, I treated you like shit out of fear. Then, that summer when you were 15 and I was 16, and those monsters attacked us… I knew a bit about what you were going through at school, Mum and Dad would get letters about the things that happened to you at school- all the attacks and danger you were in, but you always came home and were fine, but that day showed me just how real those dangers were… and those monsters. They showed me myself. All I could see were the horrible things me and my mates had done through the years and after that, I tried to change. You wouldn’t have known because you weren’t at school with me, but I dropped the old crew that year and started doing what I could. I wanted to reach out to you to apologize, but I was too afraid still- of you and dad, and you were spending less and less time at home. The summer I turned 18 I decided ‘I’m a man now, it’s time I act like one’, and I tried to talk to you, but everything I tried never panned out and then before I knew it, we were going away and leaving you behind to face whatever dangers were out there. And still. Still, you were protecting us.”  


Harry looked down at his tea and thought back to the tea cup Dudley had left by his door those years ago. He’d realized that it was Dudley’s attempts at reaching out, and he could see how hurt he was to be leaving Harry behind, but he’d never realized that Dudley had been suffering over that for so long.  
“You kinda disappeared for a while after that, into this world of yours, and I figured maybe I’d never get to apologize, but then I found you on Facebook of all things! I was so relieved. I half thought you were dead, and just knowing you were alive and well was enough for me- but something’s happened, and I need your help.”  
Dudley spoke with an urgency now that made Harry look up.  


“I sorta don’t have anyone else… I stopped talking to mom and dad- they didn’t approve of me and Iyesha, but we got married anyways and we got pregnant and had our Daisy…. But Harry- I think she’s like you. She’s magic.”  
The words hung in the air and washed over Harry like a thunder wave. Magic. Daisy was magical. Dudley’s daughter was magical. Oh God.  


“What’s been happening?”  
“The first signs started showing earlier this year, but we brushed them off. They were small things like her staying in the air too long when we threw her up or her being weirdly close to the cat, but the other day she was crying, and flowers grew where her tears fell. They were _daisy’s_... Iyesha freaked out, and I did too, but I told her about you. She thought I was crazy, but she couldn’t deny that something… unusual had happened. Then her mom called. Her Dad is from here, but her mom is from Haiti and she has been doing a family history project. She turned up some proof that a great aunt or someone was a voodoo practitioner, people from her town always went to her for healing and things and apparently, she was very good. So, we have definite magic on my side and possible almost definite magic on hers as well.”  
Harry leaned back in his chair and began to rock back and forth.  
“What can I do for you Big D?”  
Dudley smiled up at Harry and shook his head.  


“I haven’t been Big D in long time. I don’t know what to do or say even. I’m so worried for her and about her. The things you went through- I don’t want that to happen to her. I want her to be safe, but also I know she needs to learn how to control her powers, right?”  
“I was a bit of an extreme case, but yes, it can be a bit dangerous in this world, but not any more so than the normal world I don’t think. If you want to make sure she learns, I can see about getting her on the list for my school. Do you want to learn about Magic and this world?”  


“Yes!” Dudley was animated now. “That’s sorta why I wanted to come to your place- I want to immerse myself in this world as much as possible. From what I know about Grandma and Grandpa Evans, they did their best, but didn’t do much to help your mom with her powers. I want Daisy to have everything she needs. If I have to move to a hut in the woods for her or something- I’ll do it.”  
Harry laughed and Dudley joined him.  
“Hut’s shouldn’t be necessary, but it will take a bit of getting used to. Okay… Let me see what I can do. Wait here.”  
Harry walked away a bit dazed. Not only was Dudley a genuinely nice guy, but his kid was magical! And he wasn’t trying to outcast her! He absentmindedly traveled to the staircase where a portrait of the extended Weasley family sat.  


“Hey Hermione, could you call me?” It was a Saturday, but Hermione was always busy at work doing something for the Ministry and she hated being disturbed.  
The Hermione in the portrait nodded and sidled out of the frame and a minute later, the phone upstairs rang. Taking the stairs two at a time, Harry lunged upstairs.  


“Hey, Harry. What’s going on?”  
“Hi Hermione, I just had a quick question… When you first learned about the Wizarding world and stuff, how did your parents react and what did they do to get used to the world?” He was going to ask her about the laws around introducing the Wizarding world to muggles, but hesitated. She and Ron shared everything, and Ron shared everything with his brothers. Harry wanted to spare Dudley a bit and ease him into things.  
“Why do you ask?”  
“I was just thinking about how different my experience entering the world might’ve been if the Dursley’s took an interest in me. I had Hagrid to show me the ropes and I wanted an insight into what it might’ve been like if I hadn’t.”  
“Oh! How interesting. You’re right of course, Hagrid was raised in this world and probably treated everything as perfectly normal.”  
“That first day, I actually spent more time explaining muggle things to him than he did explaining wizard things.” He said laughingly.  


He could hear the smile in Hermione’s voice as she continued. “Oh well, let’s see. McGonagall came to my house to meet me and my family after sending us a letter about an opportunity for a school for “Gifted Students”. Every parent likes to think their child is special, and with me at least- it made sense to receive a letter like that. She explained about magic and gave examples of things that I might’ve done, then showed them a little trick when they didn’t believe her. She gave us a brochure about entering the world and how to do it safely as muggles then. We honestly weren’t given much help outside of that. That really should be changed.”  


“Do you think your parents still have that brochure?” Harry asked.  
“Oh, I wouldn’t know that. They’re super organized and nostalgic, though, so I wouldn’t be surprised if they did.”  
“I know this sounds weird, but could you reach out to them and ask for it? I’d love to see it.”  
“Sure Harry, I’ll send Pig to them later today and have them send him to you if they do still have it.”  


“You’re the best Hermione. And I’ll talk to McGonagall and the Muggle Studies Professor about more help for muggle born students and their family.”  
“Thanks Harry! By the way, Ron mentioned something about your cousin? Ginny told him-“  
Just then a yell came from the kitchen downstairs.  


“What on earth was that? Is everything alright Harry?”  
“I’ve got to go Hermione! I’ll call you back.”  


Harry didn’t even bother re-slotting the phone. He flew down the stairs faster than he’d gone up them and threw the kitchen door open to see Dudley backed into a wall as Kreacher closed in on him with a knife.  
“Intruder, sir! I’ve caught an intruder drinking your tea!”  
“Kreacher no! Stop! He’s a friend.”  
“But!”  
“Kreacher, stop. Think about it… you know no one can come here without permission, right?”  
Kreacher grumbled a bit and slowly lowered the knife.  


“My apologies, sir.” He bowed low to Harry and to Dudley who was still watching Kreacher warily.  
“Kreacher, this is my cousin Dudley. He’s come to visit. Dudley, this is Kreacher. He’s a house-elf, a magical creature.”  
“Please, sit sir!” Kreacher pulled Dudley’s seat up from where it had fallen and gestured to it. Harry nodded, and Dudley sat again, shaking slightly.  
“Sorry about that.” Kreacher backed out of the room and Harry looked at Dudley, trying to gauge how he was feeling. “You alright?”  
“I’m not sure… First two experiences with magical creatures and I got attacked.”  


Harry couldn’t help but smile a bit.  
“At least with Kreacher, it’s nothing personal. He’s very protective, but he grows on you. I had gone to ask a friend for help- see how she was introduced to this world and she’s going to send me some material. How about this. I’ll send you home with some books- some history, some culture, a book of magical creatures, and you and Iyesha can read them at your own pace. While you do that, I’ll look up some laws to learn what I can and can’t show you, then we can meet next week, and we can start exploring the world together.”  
“That- That sounds nice. I’d love for you to meet Iyesha and Daisy, and I’d love for them to meet your family too!”  


They made plans to meet at the park next week with their respective wives and kids, and Harry brough Dudley upstairs with him to the library, pulling out some of his old books. Dudley looked around wide eyed at the many portraits and raised an eyebrow at the scorched tapestry in the library, but for the most part- he and Harry talked about normal stuff. Their lives over the last decade, sports, everything. In the end, Harry ended up pulling out so many books that even Dudley couldn’t carry them alone. They walked together down the street, carrying large bags of books and laughing over how much they shared.


	2. Private Eye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iyesha was worried, her husband had gone crazy after her Daisy had cried a few silly flowers. He'd begun insisting that it was an act of magic, which didn't exist of course. Then he'd reached out to his mysterious cousin who lived in a building that didn't exist, needless to say, Iyesha had concerns.

Daisy had always been a special girl. Iyesha had watched her growing up, seeing how much she loved, how gentle and kind she was- just like her father. She was also tenacious and curious, traits she got from her mother. Daisy and Iyesha both had an incurable drive to KNOW, but Iyesha eventually turned a blind eye to her daughter’s oddities. She’d had to when her research had turned up nothing about why her child could seem to talk to animals and the medical journals said nothing about bone density affecting hang time when thrown in the air. There were no explanations for these things, so Iyesha cataloged them away, marking them mentally as “LATER”. 

She would have been happy to do the same when flowers began to spring up beneath Daisy as she cried, but Dudley had been shaken by it, beyond nearly anything she’d ever seen. He was still obviously upset as they were preparing for bed that night. She was in the shower as he stood in front of the sink, shaving and the haunted look in his eye pushed her to say something. 

“It was just a random coincidence dear, maybe those flower have a weird bloom schedule. We’re not botanists.”

But Dudley shook his head roughly.

“I’m telling you Eye, this is different. I’ve seen this before.”

She laughed. “There’s no way you’ve seen _this_ ”

“Well, not this… but similar things, and I’m worried.”

She stepped out onto the fuzzy rug that ran the length of the bathroom, wrapping herself in a towel before walking to stand next to him at the sink.

“And where exactly have you seen this?”

“It was my cousin…” He sighed deeply and Iyesha steeled herself. Dudley had never mentioned a cousin until a few years back, when he’d suddenly friended a man on Facebook named Harry Potter. Iyesha had gotten curious and went to look him up, and she’d found his birth record as well as a few school records until secondary school, when he’d all but fallen off the face of the earth. She’d wanted to press Dudley for more information about him but had held back. Dudley was usually forthcoming about everything, he could barely keep her birthday presents a secret. But he rarely talked about his past and she knew that was his one _thing_. He was held back by it, but unable to move on, and she respected that. 

“Harry, right?” She put a soothing hand on his arm and began to rub small circles into it. 

“Yeah. He used to do things like that. Not making flowers grow, but making sweaters shrink, or growing hair insanely fast. Little, nearly innocuous things. Shit.”

“Whoa!” Iyesha exclaimed in surprise. Dudley never swore. “What’s wrong?”

“I hope I’m wrong, please let me be wrong.”

“About what?”

He held his shaving cream covered cheeks in his hands, smearing the substance further towards his hairline. 

“You’re going to think I’m crazy.”

“I could never! I promise, hun. Whatever it is, I won’t think you’re crazy- and if I do, I promise not to say it out loud.” He smiled sadly at her and shook his head.

“I think… I think Daisy might be a wizard.”

Iyesha blinked up at her husband. He usually wasn’t much of a jokester, as evidenced by his total lack of delivery, but he’d really had her going for a while. 

“Or a witch, though I don’t necessarily know the right terms.” He continued, still deadpan. He really was trying to sell it to, he had even twisted his face into the usual anxious grimace he got when he talked about serious issues. “My cousin- he was a wizard and my Aunt and her husband were too, I think it’s a genetics thing, but Eye- I don’t know what to do if she is.”

“Dudley, you really do have to do a better job if you’re trying to prank me. Were the flowers planned too? Or did they just happen, and you decided to go with it?”

“Iyesha, I’m not joking. This isn’t a prank, I really think our daughter might have magical powers.” He nervously twisted the razor between his fingers as he spoke, and his face was truly earnest. Slowly it started to dawn on Iyesha. 

“You’re not joking?”

“No, I’m really not.”

“Then you’re crazy!” She saw him flinch and look away. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry, but Dudley…. Magic isn’t real.” He flinched harder, his eyes far away. 

“I’m not. Iyesha… Have I ever lied to you? Or said or done anything to make you not trust me?”

“No, of course not!”

“I really need you to trust me on this. Please, Iyesha.” Dudley looked nearly on the verge of tears and far more serious than Iyesha thought he could be. She was torn. She’d known Dudley for nearly 10 years now and they’d been married for half of that time. They’d first met on her first visit to her father’s birthplace, just after his death. They were both 17 and he’d been working at a chip shop that she’d visited, and she’d liked him enough to exchange information with him. They’d been pen pals, then after college, she’d moved to the UK for grad school… and to be closer to him. She loved him more than anything, but she was worried. His insistence on the realities of magic was in no way a deal-breaker, but what did it mean for his mental health and the stability they’d built together?

She’d have to figure all that out later, for now- she knew that her husband was in turmoil and she wanted to put an end to that as quickly as possible, so she hugged him. 

“Dudley-bear, I trust you. I trust you.” He gripped on to her with a fierceness and a need she hadn’t felt before. 

She didn’t really sleep that night, she spent hours replaying the conversation over and over in her mind, and she was so caught up that she didn’t really notice how quiet Dudley was. He usually snored loud enough to shake the house, but that night he didn’t. She only noticed the lack of noise as he began to stir a few hours before sun-up.

Slowly, and as silently as their creaky floors would allow, he got out of bed and crept towards the door. Iyesha listened as his footsteps led down the hall, then stopped. She got out of bed much more deftly than he did and padded to the door, shifting it open slightly. 

The sound of keys being pressed drifted down the hall to her and she could hear a faint dial tone as he pressed the final key. It was barely 6 am and he was making a call? She let the door open a bit more as Dudley began to speak. 

“Hey, Harry” He spoke softly and hesitated for a while before adding in, “It’s been a minute.”

Dudley had called his mysterious cousin, the apparently magical one. Iyesha began to worry. Was this some sort of shared delusion? Did this cousin have something over Dudley, is that what kept him so scared and tied to his past?

Down the hall, Dudley kept speaking, setting up a meeting with his cousin, at the cousin’s house. 

“12 Grimmauld Place? In London, right? Okay, see you tomorrow, Harry. Thanks for this.” 

_12 Grimmauld Place_. Iyesha made a note, she felt bad about going behind Dudley’s back, but she needed to learn more about this magical cousin. As the phone call ended, Iyesha slowly closed the door and crawled back into bed, being careful not to disturb Dudley’s side as she did so. 

A few seconds later, Dudley rejoined her in the bed, laying down quietly and they passed the next few hours that way. Finally, their alarms went off and they could pretend to wake up and go about their normal business. 

“Hey Eye, can I take your car? I have a double then a few private sessions this afternoon and need the space.”

“Sure hun, I’ll be doing some research for a story today, so I don’t need the car for anything. I still got Daisy for drop-off and pick-up, right?” 

“Yup.” 

They talked normally as they did their normal dance around their small kitchen, which was made even smaller by Dudley’s stature, careful not to worry Daisy. She was by the window, trying to explain a joke to the cat, seemingly oblivious to her parents’ chatter, but they knew from experience that Daisy was more keyed in than she seemed. If she sensed even a hint of something wrong, she was liable to ask and internalize it. 

Walking over to her and the cat, Dudley started to shake the box of cereal in his hands. 

“Hey Daisy-girl! Whaddya think, cornflakes for breakfast or eggs?”

“Eggs! The girl giggled and raised her hands to be picked up, which Dudley did quickly. 

“Daddy! Ow!” 

“Ow? Oh no!”

Dudley gently shifted Daisy, having accidently put pressure on her leg, which sported a large band-aid on it, a souvenir of the fall she’d taken last night that had led to her flower tears. 

“I’m sorry Daisy, Daddy didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“I know.” she giggled again, the pain already forgotten. “Breakfast time!”

“You’re absolutely right, let me get right on that, miss. “ Dudley swung her around, before placing her in a seat at the table. “Cereal coming right up. That’s what you wanted right?”

“No, eggs!” 

“Ooohhh, right. Right. How silly of me, eggs coming right up.” 

Iyesha sat at the table with her usual cup of coffee and puzzle book, distractedly talking to Daisy as she sipped at her mug. Before she knew it, breakfast was over, and Dudley was gone. 

“Okay Daze, ready to face the day?”

“Mhm!” the 3-year-old hummed affirmatively, tugging the straps of her backpack a bit tighter. “Ready!”

“Let’s go then.”

As she drove, Iyesha planned. _Just a quick stop by Grimmauld Place, then I’ll leave it be._ She dropped Daisy by the daycare, then began the trek through the town. 

Google led her to an old building, she could sense the history leaking out of it, but google also told her there was no Number 12 there. Some sort of mistake has been made somewhere along the way and the builders had gone straight from number 11 to number 13, and the inhabitants of Grimmauld Place just lived with it. 

Iyesha was sort of upset as she sat in the parking lot of the park down the street. Was this Harry putting her husband through a wild goose chase? Was 12 Grimmauld Place code for something? Her mind went through all the options it could, but she couldn’t make sense of the entire situation. After a few hours of staring at Grimmauld Place, she noticed a tall, very pregnant red head walk towards the building. She walked right up to the spot between 11 and 13 and then… something got into Iyesha’s eyes and when she had finished rubbing them, the red head was gone. 

_A few more hours can’t hurt, right?_

She’d wasted the whole day watching a place that didn’t exist, but she didn’t want to give it up yet. She only put the car into drive when she noticed the time. 5:17 pm. She was meant to pick up Daisy from daycare in 13 minutes, but she was at least 25 away from her. 

“Hey, Lisa! I am so sorry, I got caught up doing research and didn’t realize the time. I’ll be a little late picking Daisy up. How long? Oh, only 5 or so minutes. I’ll be there as soon as possible. I’m so sorry.” 

As she sped through the city streets her mind played the scene from the night before over and over again. Dudley’s worried face made a knot form in her stomach and the knot was growing bigger and bigger the more time passed. But Dudley was a grown man, Iyesha knew whatever this was, she couldn’t save him from it. She also couldn’t keep putting work off like she had today. 

The next day, as Dudley met with his cousin and did whatever he was going to be doing, Iyesha would actually have to go to the Library and do her best to focus. She picked up Daisy without issue and brought her home, as she pulled into the driveway, she could see Dudley in the kitchen dancing around to music that was seeping its way into the street. 

Daisy ran ahead, throwing the door open and running to join Dudley in his dance. He picked her up and went to meet Iyesha in the doorway, singing at her the whole way. 

“ _Private Eyes, they’re watching you. They see your every move/Private Eyes, they’re watching you. Private Eyes._ ” 

He and Daisy howled at the ceiling, doing their best to hit the notes and Iyesha felt the knot loosen a bit, just barely. This was still the man she married, the family they had built together. She saw Dudley beckon her forward and gave in to the urge to join him, wrapping her arms around Daisy too as they bounced around the kitchen singing. 

As the song ended, she left Dudley dancing with Daisy in the living room and went to keep an eye on the food on the stove. A glance at the microwave clock and kitchen calendar shook more of the worry out of her head. It was Friday night, meaning that in Haiti it was early afternoon. 

“Hey, do you guys wanna call Grandma Rose?” She called above the music.

“Yeah! Let’s call Grandma!” Daisy came running in from the living room, followed by Dudley. 

“Want me to grab the laptop?”

“Nah, we can just use my phone. I have a few hours left.”

Iyesha pulled her phone out and called her mom. Rose Augustin-Wright was an American-born Haitian historian taking a leave of absence from her museum job to do a history of herself. She’d travelled to her families home town in Haiti to learn more about her family and the island, and every Friday night, The Dursley’s called her to check in. 

“Hi Mama Rose!” Dudley called into the phone. 

“Hi baby!” Rose called back, yelling to be heard over the chatter around her. They talked for a while about life and Daisy informed Rose about the “horse” she had drawn at daycare that day. Iyesha and Dudley both talked around the “flower incident”, letting Rose tell them all about what she’d learned recently. 

“Iyesha, I wish you were here! I’ve met some extended Augustin’s who have the same nose and chin as us, and the stories I’ve heard!”

“Like what, Mama?”

“Apparently we have a very skilled great aunt who used to live in this village. She died a few years ago, but the people here swear she was over 100 when she went. Geurlene Augustin was her name. The people all went to her for their ills, and she’s said to have birthed at least half the people here.” Rose laughed. “Of course, there’s talk of her being great practitioner of voudou, but who knows the realities of that. The woman who took her place told me she was very powerful, she has a basket of things that belonged to her that she didn’t dare touch. She’s willing to give it to me, to get it out of her way!” 

Dudley froze as his mother in law continued to chatter away on the other side of the phone, and Iyesha swallowed hard.

“Iyesha? Dudley? Are you two still there?”

“Sorry Mama, you might’ve broken up a bit. I think you were saying something about a great aunt?”

“Yes! Our magical Aunt Geurlene. Go ‘head, if you’re breaking up, we should hang up now when we can still choose to. I’ll tell you all about your aunty in an email. I know its late there for y’all and you’ve gotta but my grandbaby to bed! Goodnight you two, goodnight Daisy!”

“Goodnight Grandma!” Daisy, oblivious to the chill that had run down her parents back, happily bid her grandmother goodnight, and Dudley and Iyesha hung up. 

“Dinner time!” Iyesha called out to break the silence.

That night, after they’d put Daisy to bed and read her a story 5 times, she and Dudley walked into their room with complete silence. As they got ready for bed, Iyesha could feel Dudley trying to catch her eye, but she kept avoiding him. Finally, they were crawling into bed and turning the lights off and she couldn’t avoid him anymore. 

“Eye, I told you it was genetic in some way. I know you think I’m mad, but my cousin is magical, so were his mum and dad. Now your great aunt-“

“Dudley, enough! Magic can’t be real. It just can’t.”

“But what if it is. Listen, Eye. Maybe I am completely stark, raving mad. But say that there’s a 30% chance I’m not. What if magic is real and our daughter has it. What if I grew up with someone with magical powers whose guardians ignored his powers until they couldn’t anymore, then punished him for having them. What if I grew up around someone who was ostracized for his magic, gaslit for years about them. I don’t want that for Daisy. I- I want to be better, to learn from the past. “

“Dudley-“ Iyesha started softly, at a loss for words.

She’d met the Dursley’s exactly once. They were profoundly unpleasant people who treated her like she didn’t exist when Dudley brought her home. They’d really just started dating in earnest and his parents were trying desperately to get Dudley to break up with her. Petunia had cried loudly in the corner as Vernon yelled in Dudley’s face, calling their relationship an abomination. Dudley stood there stone faced for a few minutes and Iyesha was so taken aback she hadn’t known what to do. He didn’t move until Vernon had turned to her, shoving his bushy mustached face into hers.

She had been so mystified by the shifting colors of his face to really hear what he’d yelled. 

_Beet red to royal purple to some sort of jaundiced blue back to red again._

She had only just begun to piece together that he’d called her a verminous bitch when she’d felt a tug at her shoulder. Dudley began pulling her out of the door and led her to the car, still stony faced. He drove her to a nearby diner and they sat there in silence as Dudley’s face began to turn red and twist up. He fought back tears as he apologized to her, Iyesha was still in shock so she hadn’t said much. A few weeks later when they’d talked about that day again, Dudley confessed that he knew his parents were bigoted, but he didn’t realize they were that bad. He’d talked about growing up in an environment where abuse and hatred were the norm, but never gone into details. Something about the way he’d talked always told her that he hadn’t experienced the abuse first hand, but this was the first time he’d really talked about it. 

“So, your parents- they were anti-magic?”

“Incredibly so. They treated my cousin like a dog because he was magic- and I realized years later that it was because he was brown too. I was horrid to him as well, I was a monster Eye. I don’t want Daisy to go through anything like that. I reached out to Harry to apologize and to figure out how to be better for Daisy- if she is magic.”

“Do you really think she’s magic? Like, the talking to cats thing could just be normal four-year-old stuff. And the floating and flowers…. I don’t know Dudley. I just can’t wrap my mind around this already and adding magic to the mix.” Iyesha wasn't dumb, spirits and the supernatural were all things she believed in, ghosts and stuff. But wizards and magical abilities? It was all a bit of a stretch

“Wouldn’t you rather be prepared for the possibility that she’s magic? My cousin didn’t get invited to a magic school til he was 10, we still have 6 years to prepare if she is magic and wouldn’t you rather entertain the possibility now and be happily relieved if that letter never comes than unprepared and unyielding and unhelpful if the letter does show up?”

Iyesha turned the idea of embracing magic over in her head, and thought about a little boy, looking up at Vernon Dursley, confused and scared by the things he could do, but having no help or support. 

“Okay. Okay, lets operate as if magic exists for now. What do we do if Daisy is magical?"

She paused, processing some of Dudley's sentence. "Wait, you said something about a magical school?”

“Yeah, there’s a boarding school my cousin went to in order to learn to control his powers, but I don’t know if I want Daisy to go there. I don’t know much about this world, in all honesty, I didn’t have the best experienced with it the few times I had interactions.”

Iyesha questioned whether she wanted to ask him what that meant, but decided to instead ask:

“So, what are the things we want to learn from you cousin?” She pulled out the notebook she kept on her bedside table and flipped to a new page. 

1\. Who are the major players?

\- Who runs everything, who are major figures that we might need to get in touch with?

2\. What are things we should do to make sure Daisy remains happy, healthy, and safe?

\- Are there classes we can take? Support groups?

3\. Where are the hubs for magical people? 

\- Can we enter them?

4\. When should we start preparing Daisy for all this? 

5\. Why

Iyesha stopped for a moment and stared at the last question she had written. _**Why. Why.** Why was this all happening? Why Daisy? Why should they trust Harry? Why had her world suddenly turned upside down?_

She scratched it out and shook her head as she moved on to 

6\. How do we prepare Daisy and ourselves for this? 

She handed Dudley the paper, saying “Make sure to ask your cousin these when you see him.”

He took it, placing it on his own bedside and the two snuggled together for the night. Again, they both pretended to sleep for a while, but eventually Dudley’s snoring soon filled the room. Still, Iyesha lay awake, thinking “ _Why? Why? Why? Why?_ ”


	3. Owls and Meetings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ginny and the boys come home and Harry sends and receives some letters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is shorter one, I wasn't really sure where to leave this one off, since I think I want to do the first group meeting from Iyesha's perspective, so be on the lookout for that.

_Dear Head Mistress,  
_

_I wanted to thank you again for the opportunity to be the DADA Professor in the upcoming school year, but this letter is about something a bit more personal…._

Harry hesitated and tapped the end of the pen against his lip as he thought about how exactly to write this letter. He hadn’t ever really been good at research and Hermione wasn’t the best at explaining things. Her explanatory letters always read as manuals written in Klingon- she always operated as if _he_ knew the same things _she_ did and he came away more confused than he started whenever he asked her for help.

The Ministry still couldn’t be trusted in his eyes, ironic since until quite recently he had _been_ Ministry, so he’d decided to reach out to the most knowledgeable person he knew. McGonagall was a great teacher and he felt that she was also kind enough to be willing to explain these almost definitely complicated procedures in a way that he could understand. 

He touched his pen back to the parchment and began writing again. 

_My Cousin, Daisy (Dudley’s Daughter) is beginning to show signs of magic and Dudley has reached out to me to introduce him to our world. If his claims are correct, he has a right to enter this world, doesn’t he? How can I help him and his family learn more about magic without breaking any laws? Also, Hermione suggested that the procedure for introducing Muggle-born’s and their families to our world be changed to make things more friendly and I can’t help but agree, it seems like Muggle-born Wizards and Witches are forced to choose our world over their family and that can’t be easy. Maybe a meeting could be had between Muggle-born alumni and the Muggle Studies professor and the Ministry to make some changes?_

Sighing slightly, Harry rolled up his parchment. He’d begun to ramble off at the end- _McGonagall will definitely take off points for that_ \- he thought before realizing that this was a personal letter between adults not a homework assignment, not that it would stop her. 

_It’ll have to do_ He called over the family owl, Archimedes, and sent her on her way. 

He was still watching Archimedes flying away as a speck on the horizon as Ginny walked back in with the kids. 

“We’re back!” she called out from the main hall, the boys sweaty and tired and happy behind her. 

“Hey! How was the park?” He asked, pulling her in for a hug. 

”Awesome!” Al yelled. James nodded quietly as he looked around. 

“Where’s Cousin Dudley?” He asked.

Harry knelt down and hugged his boys as he said, “Cousin Dudley had to go home to have dinner with his family, but we’ll see him again soon.”

”We will?” Ginny had an eyebrow raised in question to Harry, who just shrugged back. “All right, boys go get cleaned off for dinner. If you hurry up, there’s a special surprise for you!”

The boys cheered and ran up the stairs to clean up and Harry took Ginny into the dining room. He thought back to how all those years ago, Mrs. Weasley had blocked him from the room, trying to keep secrets from him and now he was taking a page out of her book. 

“So, we’ll be seeing Dudley again?” Ginny was on top of him as soon as the doors closed behind them, pulling a seat out from the table to make herself comfortable. 

“Yeah… I think we’ll be seeing a lot more of him.”

Ginny smiled relieved. She’d been so worried that this experience had been a bad one for Harry or that whatever Dudley wanted with him had been a bad thing, but if Harry was not only willing to see him again, but willing to expose Al and James to him, the meeting had been a wonderful success. 

“Gin,” Harry was grinning wildly at her. “Gin, Dudley’s kid is magic.” 

“What?!” 

“I know! Apparently his wife has some magical lineage too, and now Daisy is showing signs. Normal stuff for a nearly four-year-old, but still. Undeniable Magic, and he’s not afraid. I mean- not more than anyone would be. He came over so I could teach him about magic… and to apologize.”

Ginny got to her feet unsteadily and brought Harry in for a hug. Over the years, he’d talked about his life before Hogwarts, before being the chosen one more and more, and she knew how much he’d been hurt. She’d never really been one to forgive and forget or to believe that people could change, but it seemed like this cousin of his had, and for the better. 

“Wow, that’s so amazing! I can’t believe that, your cousin’s kid is magical! So what, is he gonna come over every weekend for a study club about magic?”

“I mean… that’s sorta the plan….” Harry rubbed his head, embarrassed at how little he’d planned out. “I’m not sure what I can and can’t show him or tell him, so I figured we’d maybe just talk about the parts of the wizarding world I know and understand.”

“So Quidditch?” Ginny stuck her tongue out at him. 

“And Hogwarts! Basically the magical school system in general and the rules for magical kids. I sent McGonagall a letter asking for her help and hopefully a reply comes back soon, but she’s busy- I’m sure it’ll take a while for her to get back to me. ‘Til then Hogwarts and Quidditch.”

“I figured that we could all meet next weekend, us and the kids and him with his wife and kids. We could just meet and talk. You’re much more knowledgeable and could fill in the gaps in my knowledge about things like laws and rules. Plus, his wife is a journalist too, a seasoned one! You could talk to her about journalist-y things.” 

Ginny thought about it. 

“I’m glad you’re getting to know Dudley, and that he seems to have become a different person, but Harry… Are you sure about this?” 

“Gin! If you’d heard the things I’d heard today! Trust me on this, just come to this meeting with me next weekend, please!” 

She nodded hesitantly and they shelved the conversation as the boys came rushing into the kitchen. They ate dinner together and the boys told Harry about all the things they’d done at the park that day and after they ate, they went to a nearby theater to see a movie together. James giggled throughout it and Albus stared mouth agape at the large screen above him. Harry realized that it was his first movie in theaters. Early on in the movie, he leaned over to Harry and whispered. 

“Dad… is this magic?”

Ginny snorted with joy and Harry nodded seriously at his young son who turned back to the screen and whispered “Whoaaaa”.

***

The next morning Ginny went to work and Harry spent the day with the boys running soccer drills in the nearby park. He returned sweaty and smiling while he listened to James and Albus chattering. A small, brown owl fluttered past overhead and when they walked in, Kreacher greeted them letter in hand. The official Hogwarts seal was on the front and when Harry opened it, the neat, familiar handwriting of Minerva McGonagall read:

Professor Potter,

I have taken your concerns for the Muggle-born students into account and must confess I have had similar concerns in the past. I have reached out to past Muggle-born students for their input and will keep you and Ms. Granger-Weasley abreast of the changes Hogwarts will make to better accommodate Muggle-borns and their families. 

As for your personal matters, the Ministry has informed me of magical acts committed by a young Daisy Dursley, but I am surprised to hear that this is the child of your elder cousin. As a magical person, Daisy has every right to enter into the magical world and until she comes of age, her parents are more than welcome into our world with her. Included in this envelope are: a list of recommended reading for your cousin, an overview of pertinent laws, and instructions for your cousin to be able to enter Diagon Alley and other wizarding venues without being accosted. 

Good luck with introducing your cousin to our world, Professor Potter. I look forward to seeing your lesson plan for the upcoming school year. 

_Headmistress Minerva McGonagal_

***

.

That weekend, The Dursley’s and the Potters both left from their respective homes and met at a park that was halfway between both of their homes. Harry was nervous to meet Dudley’s wife, he’d seen pictures of her and now heard about her from Dudley himself, but he still felt a sense of trepidation about the whole thing.

The boys were excited beyond belief about meeting not only their dad’s cousin but their cousin! They knew the rules of course, no talking about magic and stuff in front of other adults and try your best to not do anything in public that might look like magic. Neither of them were at an age where they could really control that, but it was best to keep that kinda thing in mind from an early age. 

Ginny was running the gambit between nervous and excited, settling somewhere around curious, but guarded. She sat in the passenger seat reading the Daily Prophet and tutted at the sports section. 

”They took my chess piece and cut it in half! It’s barely even an article. It’s a blurb!”

”They blurb-ified you?”

”They gave more space to that witch Pansy Perkins’ gossip piece!”<

“I was really hoping that after Rita retired, the Daily Prophet would give less credence to gossip columnists, but who am I kidding. The Daily Prophet lives and dies on its gossip pieces. “

“Do you think The Quibbler is hiring?” Ginny furrowed her brow in thought. Ever since Luna took over, the magazine had taken on a new spin. It was still new- agey whoo, but more research and adventure based… Ginny wouldn’t mind travelling about and getting into possibly dangerous situations. She was seriously planning on sending Luna an owl, but then little Lily kicked in her stomach as if to say “Hello, mum. Don’t forget about us!”

”I’m sure Luna would be happy to have you on hun, but I wouldn’t give up on the Prophet too quickly. Maybe you can make some changes to the paper, bring back some journalistic integrity! What do you think boys? Should Mum stick it out with the Daily Prophet a bit longer?”

“Yeah, don’t give up Mummy!” They pulled in to the parking lot as the boys cheered Ginny on. 

“Harry! That’s not fair.” Ginny shook her head, there was no way she could let the boys down, and she knew she had to protect Lily. “Fine, I’ll stay with the Prophet… for now. Now let’s go meet the Dursley’s!”


End file.
